Tree felling and log sawing attachment for tractors



April 1943 s. E. IRWIN, JR 2,439,607

TREE FELLING AND LOG SAWING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed Jung 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet l April 13, 1948. s. E. IRWIN, JR

TREE FELLING AND LOG SAWING ATTACHMENT FOR TBACTORS Filed June 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 NVSNTQM a2! 5'. Irwz' f w ,7

4 TTO Sam E YJ

April 1948. s. z. IRWIN, JR 2,439,607

TREE FELLING AND LOG SAWING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed June 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I nuns w 'l samyzmim l mmmw/ 4/0 April 13, 1948. s, wm, JR 2,439,607-

TREE FELLING AND LOG SAWING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed' June 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 W69;- Samue/ Z: Irwin, n

TTOwYJ [pm-En, start to provide a nove'l saw l which attachment is of ford a high degree of versatility and freedom of,

of motion for the saw-supporting Asamore Patented A r.

"'mnnmumo The present 'inventionpertainsto a novel implement attachment for tractors, and more particularly to saw attachments for tractors.

One general objector the presentinvention is attachment for tractors,

such character as to af I movement for a'circular saw powered from the tractor, to 'theend that the saw may be used optionally forcut-ting or mowing brush and light or timbers. V a

'In carrying out the foregoing object I provide a circularsaw mounted. on the outboard end of a long supporting arm adapted to project laterally from therear end of'a tractor. A more specific object of the invention is to provide such a mcchanism embodying a novel arrangement for. ad-,

justablyswinging the arm either vertically or fore and aft of the tractor's pathof movement during use, as well as for,

thesaw. The freedom 7 arm is thus c'omparableto that bf a persons'forearm. l

A further object is to provide for tractors a novel saw attachment of such character as to make possible the"utillzation of aconventional power-operated lifter arm" on the tractor for maspondingly the plane of" I nipulating the saw as well as to utilize power derived from the tractor for revolving the saw. detailed object it is contemplated in eil'ect, twisting the 4 Jannabout its longitudinal axis to alter-corre-'- shown in Fig. 1 and growth,felling trees, and cutting up felled trees board one of the I prised in the swingable supporting arm for the section, showing the porting arm. I

While the invention is susceptible ofvarious modifications and have shown in the sawnvo immvertical section along drive shaft from the rear end of the tractor.

. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail perspectiveview of the mechanism for swingably connecting the sawsupporting arm to the stationarily mounted supthe tractor.

Fig. 5 shows the saw attachment of Figs. .1

and 2 suspended in partially elevated use with a movable saw table or the like.

Fig; 6 is a detail perspective view of the incoacting tubular sections comport on the rear end of saw.

Flg. is a fragmentary detail view,

manual operating connector from the tractor to the swingable saw;sup-

alternative constructions, I drawings and will herein describe in detail the preferred embodiment, but

- it is to be understood that-I" do not thereby inspirit and scope to couple the saw-supporting arm to the tractor 4 lifting arm by means oi'a cable and to include improved stop means for limiting'cable movement within a predetermined range.

' The invention also resides invarious novel com bodied in the mechanism, some of which are, as will be apparent to thos skilled in the art, ap-, plicable'to implements'other' than saws or to saw structures other than those peculiarly adapted for tractors. Y

Further objects and advantages of theinven tion will become apparent as thefollowingdescription proceeds, taken in connection'with the accompanying drawingsin'whi'ch: i

' Figure l is aperspective view of asaw at achment embodying the present invention and shown as installed on the rear end of a tractor.

Fig. 2 is a plan view'of the saw attachment of Fig. 1 but with the saw blade shown as adjusted to lie in a horizontal plane as distinguished from the vertical plane'location ofthe same lnFig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the attachment binations or sub-combinations of elements em- I '-indicated has a power V constitute well-known example, be of the construction detailin H. F. Ferguson Patent v tend to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but intend to cover all modifications constructions falling within the of the invention as expressed in the appended claim.

Referring more a power-operated lifter arm or arms, the former being used in revolving he saw and the latter in manipulating it. 1

best shown in Fig. 3, the tractor It herein take oif shaft all I, the'same being located at therear end of the tractor (within the lower portion of the differential housing) and driven from the tractor-engine in the usualmanner, through connections and a suitable'control clutch which .are not shown since the same and conventional tractor and, as illustrated herein, may, S mply by way of disclosed in some N0. 2,118,180, is-

May '24, 1938.. Since the with the samepartially in I the l ngitu inal axis, of the position for partially in construction and V operation of such units is well understood, the same need not be detailed here. For the present, suflice it to say that a pair of lifter arms I 2 (Figs. 1 and 3) are fixed to a horizontal shaft l3 journaled on the upper rear portion of the tractor and connected by a linkage l4 with the piston 15 of a hydraulic ram 18. Pressure fluid may be admitted to or exhausted from the ram under the control of a manual control lever ll (see Fig. 2) on the tractor. Upon admission of pressure fluid to the ram the arms l2 are swung upward, whereas exhausing of pressure fluid from the ram permits the arms to move downward under the influence of the weight of the mechanism attached to them.

As to the saw attachment itself, and which constitutes the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, it has been shown (Fig. 1) as including a large, heavy-duty circular saw l8 iixedon one end of a revoluble saw arbor I8. The outer face of the saw is prefectly flat. The arbor I3 is joumaled transaxially in the outboard end of a swingable supporting arm designated generally as 28. The inboard end of this arm is connected to the trailing end of a support, designated generally as 2| detachably secured to the rear end of the tractor III, the connection of the arm being such that it may be swung not only in a vertical direction as indicated in Fig. 1, but also fore and aft of the tractorspath of movement as indicated in Fig. 2. In other words, the arm 20 has substantially a universal movement.

Power for rotating the saw is transmitted from the power take-oil. shaft I I (Fig. 3) through a drive shaft 22, detachably coupled at its forward end to the projecting rear end of the power takeoff shaft Ii. At its opposite or rear end the drive shaft 22 is connected through a pair of meshing bevel gears 23 to a stub shaft 24 carrying a pulley 25 at the inner end of the .arm 20. The latter is connected by an endless belt 26 with a pulley 21 fixed to the saw arbor l3 at the opposite or outer end of the arm 20. As shown clearly in Figs. 2 and 5, the pulleys 25, 21 are of such diameter and so arranged with respect to the arm 28 that the belt 28 when in its normal or untwisted position lies closely adjacent and parallel to the arm along its entire length, With the parts arranged as shown, the arm 20 therefore provides a large measure of protection, tending to prevent debris and underbrush from being drawn between the belt and the pulleys. The inclusion of a belt, assuch, in the drive connections to the saw is desirable in that slippage in the drive connection is thus permitted in the event that the saw jams during operation.

With reference to further detail of the parts referred to generally above, it will be observed be noted, incidentally that the linkage shown in the Ferguson Patent No. 2,118,180 referred to above, and normally operated by the hydraulic lifter arms i 2, has been omitted in the present instance.

The swingable supporting arm 20, on the other hand, consists of a plurality of sections in order to facilitate the solution of various belt tensioning problems, as well as to accommodate twisting of the arm (about its longitudinal axis) for altering the plane of the saw blade l8. In the present instance the arm 20 is shown (Figs. 1, 2 and 5) as including a pair of axially aligned tubular sections or members 33, 34, the inner end of the section 33 being telescoped within the ad- Jacent end of the inboard section 34. The bearings for the saw arbor is are carried by a bar 35 fixed in the outer end of the tubular section 33. A third or inner end section of the arm 28 is extensible in character and in this instance comprises a rectangular frame 36 (see also Fig. 6)

welded to the tubular section 34 and having a diagonal brace 31 also fixed to the latter. The

, extensible section of the arm 20 also includes'a upon reference to Figs. 2 and 3 that the support 2| comprises a tubular housing 28 having a flanged forward end rigidly, although detachably,

fixed to a suitable face provided on the differential housing at the rear end of the tractor. 'The housing 28 projects generally horizontally from the rear end of the tractor and the drive shaft 22 extends axially through it. Diagonal struts 28 brace the housing 23 laterally, the forward ends of these struts being bolted to the rear axle housing of the tractor as, for example, by the bolts 30 which may also serve to secure the rear wheel mud guards (not shown) in position. The housing 28 is braced vertically by a parallel pair of struts 3| inclined forwardly and upwardly and having their upper ends bolted at 32 to a ing on pair of jaws 38 pivoted on pins 39 (see also Fig. 4) to swing about an axis coincident with the axis of the pulley 25 and slidably receiving between them the frame 33. The latter frame is adjustably secured to the coacting jaws 38 by bolts 4|! (Figs. 2 and 5) which pass through holes 4| in the frame (Fig. 6) and registering slots 42 (Figs. 4 and 5) in the jaws 38.

To adjust the tension of the belt 26 the operator has only to loosen the bolts and slide the frame 36 longitudinally of the jaws 38 in a direction to either increase or decrease the belt tension as may be desired, and thereafter retighten the bolts. Adjusting screws 43 (Fig. 5) threaded in suitable lugs provided on the frame 36 and disposed with their noses bearing againstv the ends of the jaws 38 are provided to facilitate such adjusting movement.

Twisting of the supporting arm section 33 relative to the section 34, which telescopingly engages it, is utilized in altering the plane of the saw blade l8. For some cutting operations it may be desirable to locate the blade horizontally as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, whereas in other instances it may be desirable to locate the blade in a vertical plane as indicated in Figs. 1 and 5. If desired, a lever 44 (Fig. 5) may be pivotally connected to the arm section 33 at 4-5 to aid in manipulating the arm section 33 when making such adjustment. A spring-urged latch 46 on the lever 44 is arranged for alternative engagement with two pairs of notched lugs 41, 48 displaced from each other substantially ninety degrees about the periphery of the non-rotatable arm section 34. The latch and lugs thus serve to locate and retain the arm in corresponding ones of its two alternatively available positionsof angular or twisting adjustment.

Provision is made for automatically retaining the tension in the belt 26 substantially constant (at the value preset by adjustment of parts 38, 38 relative to each other) throughout the twisting of the belt incident to twisting of the. arm section 33 relative to section 34. For that purpose the end 3441 of the section 34 is shaped in spiral form and a complementally spiraled strap 33a. is weldedto the section 33 and presents an edge as a shoulder against which the end 34a. bears. The abutting surfaces of 33a and 34a thus cam the section 33 longitudinally outward as such section is turned in a direction which would section a so that the tendency to increase belt tension is compensated. At all times the tension in the belt pulls the member axially inward, retaining the edge of strap Ila in'engagement with the complementally shaped end Ila of the section '34.

The pivotal mounting of the saw-supporting arm 20 on the pins 38 an fore motion ofthe arm has been heretofore noted. In addition, provision is made for'pivoting the arm about the axis of the drive shaft 22 so that it may swing generally vertically or, in other words, have, altogether, substantially a universal motion relative to the rear end of the tractor. V For such purpose the pivot pins 39 are fixed to respective ones of a pair of bracket arms 49 (Figs.

7 3 and 4) rigidlyjoined by a frame 50. The frame 50 is, in turn, secured to a sleeve 5| telescoped within the tubular housing 28 and rotatable therein, although held against axial displacement by a dog screw 52. A housing 53 for the gearing milarly.-

the lifter arms 4 88 connected at its oppopair of linksti depending from i2. The cable 85 is led under a pulley ll Journaled'on the upper side of the housing 22 (see also Figs. 3 and'4) and thence up over chored to a cross bar site ends to a a pulley 69, its opposite end beinganchored to a reenforced bracket Ill fixed tothe "frame and and aft swinging 23 is bolted to a pad 54 fixed to the frame 50.

The frame 50, housing 53, bracket arms 49' and sleeve 5| are thus all adapted-toswivel as a unit about the horizontal axis of the drive shaft 22 upon turning of the sleeve 5| within the housing 28. r

tractor driver from his seat on the tractor... Desirably the vertical mbtioniabout the axis of the drive shaft 22) is accomplished principally by Both vertical and fore and aft motionof the; saw-supporting arm are controllable by the bracket arm structure 19, 58 is journaled in a cap Illa (Figs. 1 and 3) threaded on the upper end of an upright standard II for free swiveling motion. The'standard i i is rigid with the housing 28 and is hollow, the

50. The upper pulley cable beingled up through it. As the hydraulic.

lifter arms 12 are swung upward, the cable 85 is pulled forward, thus swinging the saw-supporting arm p.20 upward. Conversely, when the hydraulic pressure in theram- I5 is relieved so that the lifter arms .i2 may descend, the weight of the saw audits supporting arm 20 causes it to swing downward, retaining the cable 55 taut. Stop lugs 12 (Figs. 2 and 3) are adjustably fixed to respective ones of the braces 31 in position to intercept the bar 56 as the latter moves downward during descent of the saw-supporting arm 20, thus limiting such downward movement of the arm to anyjdesired stopping p0int;deter-. mined by thesetting or 'the stop lugs 12. i

For transport purposes the saw-supporting arm 20 is desirably positioned vertically as'indicated in dotted lines in Fig; i. Itis raised'tosuch upright position by hand and in such case the cable 65 is slacked-oflf; To'condition the arm for power derivedfrom thehydraulically-operated which must be manipulated. Y he fore and aft motion may, on the other hand, be accomplished simply by manual operation. For the latter purlifter arms l2 on the tractor in view of the weight pose a hand lever 55 having a quadrant 55 is pivoted on a sub-base detachably secured to the rear axle of the tractorand-positioned tofbereadily availableto" theoperator (Figs: 1, zan'd' 3). This lever '55 swings fore and aft of the tractor and is connected to'an intermediate por-.

the registering hole 15 (Fig. 1) in a bar 80 welded on the standard Ii.

tion of the swinging saw-supporting arm 2li-by a connection which is preferably yieldabl y 'ex-' tensible. -In the present instancesuch connection is shown(see Figs. 2 and 7) as including a rod 51 pivotally connected at its forward end to 9. lug 58 on the lever 55 and having its rear'end fixed to .a sleeve 59. A-second rod is tele-' scoped within this sleeve as and its forward end positioned to abut solidly against the end of the rod 51 when thrust against the same. A cofntrac tile spring 5| encirclesthe sleeve 55 and is anchored at its opposite ends to the sleeve 59 and to the rod 60. The outer end of the latter rod 80 is pivotally connectedat 52 to the upper one of the jaws 38 (see also Fig. 4). l8 encounters an obstruction the spring 5i per Whenever the saw mits some. yield so that the shock-of impact is cushioned. A safety chain 63 and tension: spring 64 (Fig. 2) are anchored, respectively, to the:

lifting of the same into such transport position,

is-removed from'the hole 13' in the jaw-38. .thus

- disabling the connection from the lever 55.

Thereafter the Operator manually swings the arm 20 into upright positionand locks it against fall.- ing rearwardly from-such position bypassing a pin (not shown) through the hole 13 and a hole '14 in a link 15 pivoted on an upright arm 16 rigid with the frame and bracket assembly 49, 50 (Figs. 4- and 5). To lock'the arm 20 against falling sideways a pin 11 (Fig. 5) is inserted not only through hole 15 in the arm 10, but also through Theoperation of the saw attachment will in general be clear. from the foregoing Byway of. recapitulation, it may be assumed, first of all,

that the operator wishesto cut brush or other 7 lightgrowth as, for example, in clearing pasture land. In such case the stop lugs 12 are located to intercept the. descent .of the'bartii when the arm 20 and the saw 18 are inhorizontal position, or in some slightly elevated position, dependingupon how closely the growth is to be: cropped.

The operator moves the control lever I"! to relieve hydraulic'pressure on the ram l6 and the arm 25 descendsto the preset position determined by the stop lugs. The drive to the power takeoil "shaft II is engaged'and thereafter the saw It may be allowed to run continuously. The op-' ..erat0r then drives the tractor forward with the ,saw running, cuttingdown the growth as'it goes, moreo'r less in themanner of a mower. Upon tractorand to a frame 36 of the arm 20 (see also Fig. 6) so as to limit the rearward swing of such arm 20 and the load imposed. on the spring ll.

Vertical swinging motion isimparted .to the saw-supporting arm 20 about the axis of the drive shaft 22 by power derived from the hydraulic lifter arms i 2 through the use of a cable 55 (Figs.

1. and 2). The forward end of such cable is an coming to a boulder-or similar obstruction, the

, operator has only to move the control lever 11 to raise the saw clear byP Wer, the arms. 12 rising and drawing in the cable 65 to lift the arm 2!). Restoration of the-control lever H to its on position permits-the arm 20tolower back to its previous working position as limited by the stop lugs.

As the saw 18 cuts'its way through the growth which it encounters, any sudden shocks ofimpact aeaaoov against small tree trunks, etc., are absorbed by the spring 6|, the yield of the latter permitting the arm 20 to drop to the rear slightly. Such rearward swing is, however, limited by the normally slack safety chain 63'and heavy spring 84.

To alter the angle at which the arm 20 projects, the driver has only to move the hand lever 55 to shift such arm accordingly. Such control is, moreover, particularly useful in felling large trees, that is, those too large to be downed when the tractor is moving along steadily-and the saw acting more or less as a mower. When such a large tree is to be cut, the driver halts the tractor near it with the edge of the saw l8 presented to the trunk. Then by moving the lever 65 he feeds the saw it slowly through the trunk, swinging the arm 20 horizontally to do so. Should the tree be so large as to require it, the tractor can be shifted and more than one pass taken with the saw.

performing a similar sawing operation, the tractor is driven up alongside the treeand stopped. The operator grasps the adjustment lever 44, releases the latch 46 from the lugs 41 and twists the saw-supporting arm section through ninety degrees, thereafter looking it in its new position by engaging the latch with the other pair of lugs =48. The saw blade I6 is thus turned to the vertical position of Fig. 1. The arm 20 is elevated to locate the saw above the log to be cut and thereafter the revolving saw is lowered into contact with the log. For the latter purpose the operator moves the control lever l1, exhausting pressure fluid from the ram so that the lifter arms l2 are permitted to descend slowly under the weight of the saw and arm 2ll. v As the saw 4 .20 For cutting up or sectioning a felled tree or 8 connection of the cable 66 is also made. The implement is thus completely freed from the tractor and may be stored until the next occasion for its use arises. The adjustment of the stops l2 isin no way affected by such removal.

I claim as my invention:

In a saw attachment for a tractor having a vertically swingable lifter arm pivoted thereon for powered elevation and alternative lowering under load upon removal of the application oi power thereto, the combination of an elongated arm having a circular saw ioumaled on the outer end thereof, means pivotally connecting the inner end of said arm to the rear portion of the tractor for generally universal swinging motion with reference thereto,.a flexible cable, means for detachably connecting said cable to the lifter arm on the tractor, means for connecting said cable to said arm for raising of the latter upon raising of the lifter arm, a stop supporting member arranged longitudinally along the path of movement of said cable and means including a stop adjustably positionable along said stop supporting member engageable with a coacting abutment fixed to said cable and movable therewith for positively limiting the movement of said cable in the direction of its movement for descent of cuts its way through the log it continues its descent. The stop lugs 12 are preset to arrest such descent before the saw works its way into the.

ground. v

The saw attachment can also be conditioned for use in sawing up logs, lumber or the like on a suitable saw table. For that purpose the operating connector rod 60 is disengaged from the up by hand into vertical position where it is locked as heretofore described. 1

Removal of the implement from the tractor for substitution of some other implement is, as will be readily perceived, a simple matter. connection rod is disconnected from the arm 20 and the sub-base for the hand lever 55 unbolted from the tractor axle to demount it. The braces 29, 3| are also unbolted from the tractor. as is the housing 26, and the drive shaft 22 disconnected from the power take-oi! shaft ll. Dis- The said am.

SAMUEL JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: I

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name I Date 142,611 Carothers Sept. 9. 1873 594,729 Crosby Nov. 30, 1897 827,548 Martin July 31, 1906 972,517 Diamond 1 Oct. 11, 1910 1,126,312 Strauss -1 Jan. 26, 1915 1,316,743 Roche et al Sept. 23, 1919 1,318,324 Keon Oct. 7, 1919 1,447,543 Gessman Mar. 6, 1923 1,473,536 Avery Nov. 6, 1923 1,564,382 Trelman Dec. 8, 1925 1,602,357 Georgelis Oct. 5, 1926'- 1,691,581 Mueller et a1. Nov. 13, 1928 1,712,291 Byrne -1 May 7, 1929 1,798,402 Dibble -1--- Mar. 31,1931 1,824,555 Lathers Sept. 22, 1931 1,832,599 Wilhelm et a1. Nov. 17, 1931 2,050,952 Jacques Aug. 11, 1936 2,118,180 Ferguson May 24, 1938 2,216,971 Farmer Oct. 8, 1940 2,310,152 Ronning r Feb, 2, 1943 2,312,287 Renner Feb. 23, 1943 2,330,996 Rivers Oct. 5, 1943 2,350,880 Dellinger et 8.1. June 6, 1944 2,354,095 'Adams July 18, 1944 2,354,625 Van Sickle, July 25, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 27,542 Sweden Oct. 16, 1909 101,436 Australia June24, 1937 

